Coming, occurring, continuing, or remaining after the correct, usual, or expected time; delayed: a late breakfast; a late meeting. See Synonyms at tardy. b. Occurring at an advanced hour, especially well into the evening or night: a late movie on television; the late flight to Denver.
Â­Just Â­about every tree has an outer layer of cork bark, but the cork oak (Quercus suber) is the primary source of most cork products in the world, including wine bottle stoppers. These trees primarily grow in countries that run along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, where there's plenty of sunshine, low rainfall and high humidity. The countries that produce the most cork include Portugal, Algeria, Spain, Morocco, France, Italy and Tunisia.
The bark of a tree or plant can also perform a specific function. Corks in wine bottles are actually from the bark of a tree (cork tree). Some bark has been designed to peel away as the tree grows. Other types of bark are very thick to protect the plant from animals and insects. Not all plants even live in the ground. Some specialized plants called epiphytes actually live on the side of other trees or on rocks. They are able to collect water themselves but do not use roots to gather it up. Their roots have been specialized to dig in or grab on to the larger object. They don't always hurt the trees; they just hang out on the outside.